


Louis Tomlinson and the Upstairs Neighbour

by mistresscurvy



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Crossover, Kid Fic, M/M, Secrets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-31
Updated: 2014-12-31
Packaged: 2018-03-04 13:38:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3070223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mistresscurvy/pseuds/mistresscurvy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There's something a bit strange about Louis's new neighbour. Louis's going to figure out what it is.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Louis Tomlinson and the Upstairs Neighbour

**Author's Note:**

  * For [harriet_vane](https://archiveofourown.org/users/harriet_vane/gifts).



> This is for my darling harriet_vane - I thought it was time this universe had a real fic :D 
> 
> Thank you to Olivia for the expert cheerleading and fantastic beta job, and to lokte for the Britpick. All remaining errors are my own. 
> 
> If you want to know what the crossover in this story is before reading, click through to the end notes.

When Louis came out of his third floor flat, he could hear someone coming up the stairs. That suggested nothing good. 

"Oh no, is the lift broken again?" Louis asked, turned toward his door and locking up. "They said it was fixed for good, but I thought it still looked a bit dodgy." He turned to see a man with a Superman curl over his forehead and a short-cropped beard climbing the stairs. He was carrying a baby in one arm and about a million carrier bags in his other hand, laden down like a pack mule. "Do you have everything?" Louis asked in alarm, since he looked about a second away from losing his grip on either the bags or the baby or both. 

The man looked surprised that someone was talking to him. "Oh! Yes, I'm fine. Mabel and I just did our big shop, didn't we." He kissed her on the cheek and she grabbed his ear in response. "But what did you mean, is the lift broken again?"

"Oh, it was dodgy for most of September," Louis said. "Died practically every time I came home until they fixed it." 

"Normally it works, though?" The man and the baby were both staring at Louis intently, still stood on the stairs. It was a bit unnerving. 

"Um, yeah. It's a crap building, but it's not that crap," Louis said finally, waving an arm toward the lift. 

"Imagine that," the man exclaimed, hurrying up the rest of the stairs and walking to the closed lift doors. "How does it work, then? Does something pull it up, or is it electric?"

Louis's grasp of how a lift worked was rudimentary, at best. "I think it's with pulleys and levers? And those are probably on an electric system. At least, when the power goes out, so do the lifts, so." He shrugged his shoulders self-consciously. 

"Amazing," the man breathed.

All of this lift talk had distracted Louis from what was really important, which was that at some point a fit bloke with a baby had moved into his building, and he hadn't met him yet. "Haven't seen you around here—did you move in recently? I'm Louis." He held out his hand for a shake. 

The man looked at Louis's hand and then back and forth between Mabel on one arm and his shopping bags in the other hand. He finally shrugged, looking sheepish. "I'm Liam, and this is Mabel. We've rented Mrs Huddleston's flat on the fourth floor."

"That's right above me," Louis said. "Do you like being so high up, sweetheart?" he asked Mabel, who giggled and then hid her face against Liam's shoulder. Louis focused on Liam again. "I hope nothing happened to the old battleaxe."

Liam shook his head. "No, she just went north to stay with her daughter for a bit, and I know her family, so when we were looking for a place to stay this seemed ideal."

"Well, welcome," Louis said. He couldn't help but notice that Liam didn't seem to show any strain at holding a wriggling baby and multiple bags all at once. He wondered at the muscles Liam must be hiding under his jacket. "Didn't want to take the pushchair today?"

Liam looked faintly shocked at the suggestion. "I prefer to carry her," he said shortly.

"Haven't you got a baby bjorn, then?" Louis asked. He knew where Liam lived and the name of his baby now; that meant he was clearly close enough to them to comment on Liam's parenting choices.

"What's that?" Liam asked, his face open and curious, and really, it was unfair for someone to look so attractive while asking such a dumb question. 

Louis huffed and pulled out his phone. "It's a baby carrier. You strap it onto your chest and it supports the baby, and that way you'd have two hands for all your bags." He pulled up a picture of his mum carrying Ernie and showed it to Liam.

Liam's eyes went wide. "That is _incredible._ "

Louis nodded. "That's what I was telling you—"

The shopping bags went crashing to the floor and Liam took the phone from Louis's hand. "It's so light. How do they make it so light?" he demanded, flipping the phone every which way in his big hand.

It turned out Louis's understanding of how his new iPhone worked was even less sophisticated than his grasp of lifts mechanics. He opened his mouth to make something up and then said, "Haven't got a clue, to be honest. It's practically magic."

Liam nodded, still staring at the phone. It had also caught the attention of Mabel, who was reaching for it. "Bah!" she demanded. 

"No no, that's not for babies," Louis said. He buzzed his lips at her until she focused back on him, and then smiled. He looked back at Liam, who had managed to lock the phone and was looking puzzled. "That's not really for you, either. I need it?" Louis said, aware that he sounded less firm than he might, given that a near-stranger had all but stolen his phone.

"Oh!" Liam exclaimed, holding Louis's phone out to him. "I'm sorry, I just, I don't know anyone else who has this." 

Louis shrugged, feeling a bit pleased as he took it back. "Yeah, I'm a bit of an early adopter. Can't wait to have the latest version of everything."

"I'm not much for gadgets," Liam said sheepishly. "But I might need to get that baby bjorn."

"I can ask my mum if she still has hers," Louis offered. "No need to buy a new one in that case."

Liam looked touched, and a little confused. "Thanks, that's really kind of you," he said, looking at Mabel and tugging her hat down low.

"Don't mention it," Louis said, suddenly feeling a bit awkward for offering it to someone he'd only just met. Mabel was too cute, he decided. It wasn't really his fault. "Anyway, I should go. I'm already late for work."

"Oh, sorry to keep you!" Liam somehow managed to pick all the bags back up while keeping Mabel steady on his hip. "Nice to meet you, Louis!" he called down from the stairs as he went up to the fourth floor. 

"You too," Louis shouted after him, feeling a bit like he'd just got hit with a lorry. 

*

Louis had practically forgot about his new upstairs neighbours after a long day and night at the studio and a dreamless sleep to follow. But he was rudely reminded of him when he woke up and went to his bathroom to discover that his bathroom ceiling was leaking again. He had no choice but to check upstairs to see if there was a problem in Liam's flat, or if it was something he'd need to take to the landlord this time. 

He threw a pair of trackies on over his pants and grabbed an old t-shirt off his floor, doubling back for a beanie to cover his sleep-flattened hair before he went up to the fourth floor. It was ridiculous to be nervous about checking in about a shower leak, of all things, but he hopped from one foot to the other after he knocked on the door.

There was a loud thump and then the door opened to reveal Liam with Mabel on his hip. 

"Hello," Liam said, blinking at him. 

"Do you ever put her down?" Louis asked. 

"Yes?" answered Liam, sounding confused. "But she likes being up here."

"Gah," said Mabel, which seemed definitive enough.

Louis leaned in and bopped her on the nose. "Don't let him carry you everywhere, you need to explore."

"Safely!" Liam added. 

Louis shrugged. "You can have safe adventures. Mostly," he added with a wink. Liam looked like he was going to argue with that, so he cut him off before he could. "I'm here about my bathroom, actually."

"Is it clogged? Do you need to use ours?" Liam asked, stepping away from the door and letting Louis in. 

"No, there's water coming in through the ceiling," Louis said, tapering off as he heard the unmistakable sound of water running. "Any chance you know why that might be?"

"Oh!" Liam said, turning around and running toward the bathroom, Mabel in tow. Louis followed to see Liam reaching in and turning off the tap. The tub was overflowing, and the floor of the bathroom was covered with water. "Shit—forget I said that—there are extra towels in the airing cupboard, fetch me some?" Liam asked, looking frazzled and embarrassed at swearing with a baby in his arms. 

Louis got a stack of towels and brought them all in, stacking them on the toilet. He reached into the overflowing tub and pulled the plug out of the bath. Liam was busy putting the towels down on the floor to soak up the water. "Don't worry too much about swearing in front of her, I swore in front of my sisters all the time and they grew up okay."

"I don't want her to take after me like that," Liam said. Every time he dipped down to mop up more water, Mabel giggled and screamed happily.

"You're like her own personal roller coaster right now," Louis said. He should have been cross that Liam had managed to make his crap bathroom even more crap, but instead he was charmed against his will. "Why didn't you turn it off?" he demanded, in an attempt to combat that. 

"I forgot?" Liam said sheepishly.

"How did you forget?" Louis asked incredulously. "It's a bloody bath."

Liam shrugged, cheeks a little pink. "More important things to think about, I guess. Right, Mabel?"

Louis was about to point out that not flooding his downstairs neighbour's flat might qualify as important when Mabel's face crumpled in warning. "Oh, what's wrong, baby girl?"

"I was just about to give her a bottle when you stopped by," Liam said, tossing down the rest of the towels and walking past Louis out of the bathroom. 

"Oh, I interrupted your breakfast, how rude of me," Louis said. He followed behind and made faces at Mabel, managing to forestall the meltdown long enough for Liam to get a bottle in her hands.

"I really am sorry about your bathroom," Liam said after a moment. 

Louis shrugged. "No harm done, I guess. You can make it up to me with a brew. I hadn't got a chance to make myself a cup before coming up here, and I'm dying," Louis said, shamelessly prolonging his stay. 

Weirdly, Liam looked caught out. "I, uh. That might be a problem."

"Don't tell me you don't have a kettle?" Louis asked, agast. 

"No no, I do, I just haven't managed to make it work," Liam said sheepishly.

"Well, Tomlinson is on the case. There's not a kettle in the world I can't bend to my will. The kettle whisperer, they call me," Louis said, nattering on like an idiot. He really did need tea. 

Liam pointed to the kettle. "Be my guest, then."

Louis walked over, prepared to lovingly minister to the kettle and, if necessary, croon and coax it into cooperation. After a moment of study, he turned back to Liam. "Is this exactly how you've had it set up?"

Liam nodded. "Just like that," he said, Mabel watching him intently while she held her bottle. 

"Nothing different at all," Louis confirmed. 

Liam shook his head. 

Louis looked back at the kettle. "Well, and this is just a hunch, mind, but you might want to start by plugging it in." He plugged it in and then flipped the switch, not at all surprised when the light went on.

"I knew I was forgetting something!" Liam said happily. "Thanks a million, mate, I've been dying without my morning cuppa."

Forgetting the bath, forgetting to plug in an electric kettle. Louis wondered what else Liam was forgetting. Mabel pulled the bottle out of her mouth with a loud, satisfied pop. "All done, sweetheart? Give her here, I can burp her," Louis said, holding his hands out to her. "You can make the tea," he added, when Liam seemed a bit reluctant. 

Finally, Liam gave her over. "How do you take yours?" he asked, walking to the fridge.

"Just milk, thanks," Louis said, bouncing Mabel and rubbing over her back. She certainly didn't seem like Liam was forgetting anything about her. Aside from being a bit milk drunk at the moment, she appeared to be a perfectly healthy, well-cared-for baby, no matter that her daddy didn't seem to have a clue how to manage a household. "Is her mum out of town, then?" Louis asked. Liam didn't seem exactly like the sort of bloke who fell to pieces when his missus was away, but that would explain a few things. 

Liam didn't answer for a moment, and Louis began to worry he'd overstepped. "Her mum's not in the picture," Liam said eventually. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up something painful," Louis said quickly. 

"It's not," Liam said with a small smile. "It's always just been the two of us. Right, Mabel?" He brought the milk over to the kettle and got out two mugs. "Sometimes I worry I'm not enough, but—"

"You are," Louis interrupted him. "No one could look at this happy face and doubt that." He ran a finger down Mabel's chubby cheek; she reached up and grabbed it, triumphant. 

"Thanks," Liam said quietly. "Here's your tea."

Louis didn't ask any further probing questions for the remainder of his unexpected visit, just drank his tea while Mabel slowly fell asleep on his shoulder. She didn't stir at all when Liam took her from his arms and walked him to the front door. 

"She'll be out for an hour or so, she always sleeps like the dead after a bottle," Liam said, gently rocking her back and forth. 

Louis eyed them. "She does actually sleep in a crib, right? Not just in your arms?" he asked, only half kidding. 

Liam grinned at him. "Sorry again about the bath."

"Don't mention it," Louis said, his mind stuck on Mabel's lack of a mum. "Speaking of, I should probably go take one," he said.

"You said it, not me," Liam said. 

"Hey!' Louis protested, smiling despite himself when Liam laughed and closed the door. He gave a little wave to the closed door and then made his way back down to his apartment, still thinking hard. 

*

Liam stayed on his mind all during the day and that night down the pub, where he sat silently next to Zayn and studied his pint like it would reveal the secrets of the universe. 

"Alright, out with it," Zayn said finally. 

Louis blinked and looked up at him. "What?"

"You've not said more than six words together all night. Clearly something's up. New bloke at the studio?" Zayn asked, casually enough, but with a hint of real worry bleeding through. 

"No—well, sort of—but not exactly," Louis said, speaking over himself and not clarifying anything at all, from the look on Zayn's face. He took a deep breath and tried again. "How could someone forget to plug in a kettle?"

It all came spilling out from there: meeting Liam and Mabel in the hall and the conversation about the lift and the bathtub and the kettle and possibly how kind Liam's brown eyes were and the way he looked at his daughter and how utterly precious she was. 

They were on round three by the time Zayn bothered trying to add his tuppence-worth. "So he's a single dad with a baby," Zayn said.

Louis stared at him. "Haven't you been listening at all? Yes, obviously."

Zayn shrugged. "Mate, when Kazam was a baby, I could barely remember my own name, I was so tired. And I had Pez sharing the load with me. It sounds like he's doing it all alone. Some things are going to fall by the wayside."

"But a kettle!" Louis said, not sure he was ever going to get over that part. 

Zayn grinned. "Not everyone has the deep emotional connection you do with your kettle, Louis."

"Bessie's a good girl, I won't have you slagging her off," Louis said. 

"Wouldn't dream of it. Just saying that if Mabel seems happy, and the flat's not a complete nightmare, you might give Liam a bit of a break on the rest of it," Zayn said. "Of course, you could always stop by to make sure the flat's okay," he added, looking at Louis over the top of his pint. 

"Probably I should. I'll just stop by tomorrow for a friendly visit," Louis said casually. 

Zayn cocked an eyebrow at him as he finished his drink. "Well, I'd better be off, it's getting late," he said, jumping off the bar stool. 

"Give my love to Perrie and the little monster," Louis said, pulling him in for a hug. 

"Maybe we'll come by your place soon—we'd love to meet Liam, and Kaz loves babies," Zayn said slyly, with a eyebrow waggle. 

"Broodiest three year old I've ever seen," Louis said, sending him off with a smile and a wave. 

*

Visiting again the next day was just good manners. He needed to check to see if the kettle still worked, and that the bath hadn't caved in. If it gave him a good opportunity to observe Mabel and get to know her dad a bit more, that was purely coincidence. 

Louis was fully prepared to offer up this explanation to anyone who might ask. When Liam answered the door this time, however, he looked frazzled. 

"The bath's not running, I just checked. Please don't tell me it's leaking again," he said, looking completely bedraggled and sounding defeated. 

"No, it's fine, I stopped by to see if the kettle still worked," Louis said. He peered at Liam. "Are you alright? Maybe you need a cup of tea."

Liam waved his hand at him and walked away from the door, which Louis took as an invitation to come inside. "She was up all night wailing and I didn't sleep at all. She finally dropped off at five, but I was still going on adrenaline and couldn't drop off."

Louis frowned. "The walls here must be thicker than I thought; I didn't hear anything." 

For some reason that made Liam look slightly guilty. "That's part of why Mrs Huddleston thought it would work well for us," he said, glancing to his left. 

Louis followed his gaze and saw Mabel sat on top of a carpet with a train print on it spread out over the living room floor. She was surrounded by brightly coloured blocks, which she was smashing together with great glee. "She seems happy enough now," Louis said. 

" _She_ actually got a few hours of sleep last night," Liam said morosely. 

He'd come over to make sure that Mabel was alright, but Louis was beginning to think he should be more worried about Liam. "Have you got anyone who can give you a break?"

Liam blinked slowly. "What do you mean?"

Louis waved at him. "You're about to fall over from exhaustion. Do you have any family nearby that can watch her for a night or two while you rest?"

"I'm fine." There was a tone of finality in Liam's voice, but Louis ignored it. 

"You need to let someone else help you out for a bit," Louis said firmly. "Even if it's just for a night." 

"She hasn't slept more than three feet from me since I brought her home and that's not changing," Liam snapped. 

"Or she could sleep in her nursery with the baby monitor and that way you'd actually get some rest!' Louis yelled back. 

"I can sleep perfectly well with her there," Liam said stubbornly. 

"Obviously that's not true," Louis said. 

"And I don't have a baby monitor or whatever it's called, and I don't need it, because she only needs one monitor and that's me," Liam finished, looking triumphant but also a bit confused. 

Louis looked at Mabel like she might have the answers. "Are you from the 1950s or something? Who doesn't have a baby monitor?"

"I don't know what that is!" Liam said petulantly. "I'm doing my best, but you're right, I haven't got a lot of help, and not everyone has a baby dongle and a mirrorball, but that's fine. That's fine, because Mabel is safe and happy and that's all that matters!"

They stared at each other, until the laughter that threatened to bubble up overtook Louis completely, and he lost it. 

"A baby dongle," he gasped, wiping tears from his eyes. 

"You know, the strappy thing that you can carry her in," Liam said, beginning to crack a smile. 

"It's called a baby bjorn," Louis said. 

"How is that less silly than a dongle?" Liam demanded, and Louis started laughing all over again. There was a squeal of triumph from Mabel as she beat together two of the blocks loudly. "Oh, I'm sorry, Miss Mabel, are we not paying enough attention to you?" Mabel tossed one of the blocks away in response. 

"I'm not sure if that was a yes or a no," Liam said. 

"Probably she's not that pleased about me shouting at you," Louis said. That was almost like apologising. 

Liam shrugged. "You never did tell me what that thingy was," he said, smiling at Louis like they were sharing a joke and hadn't just been shouting at each other.

It took Louis a minute to remember what exactly he had been shouting at Liam about; he was a bit distracted by how gorgeous Liam was when he smiled, the way his eyes crinkled up with happiness. _I did that,_ he thought with a smug bit of pride. He eventually managed to look away from Liam's face and mentally retraced their conversation to figure out what Liam meant. "Oh, a baby monitor! You put a little device in her nursery and the camera records her and you can see and hear that she's okay, even if you're in another room."

Liam looked like he'd just found God. "Wow," he said finally, sounding overwhelmed and a little teary. 

"Listen, I'm up at my mum's this weekend—why don't I bring you back some stuff? Not because you're doing a bad job, just. It might help," Louis said, shrugging.

"That would be really nice," Liam said, looking a bit flummoxed. 

"It's no trouble," Louis said, eyeing Mabel, who was yawning widely. "And if you get her to go down for a nap soon, try and sleep while she does."

"I'll give it a go," Liam said.

"Well, I'll see you when I get back, then," Louis said, giving a tiny wave. "Try to survive without me shouting at you in the meantime."

"I'll do my best," Liam said with a soft smile, and Louis left, feeling more and more certain he was in real trouble. 

*

Three days later, Louis came back from visiting his mum. He took the lift one floor up that evening and knocked on old Mrs Huddleston's door, his heart pounding. 

For a long moment there was no response at all, the floor so quiet Louis felt like an intruder, no matter that this was his third visit in a week. He looked down at the baby bjorn in his hands, feeling more and more awkward, and wondered if he could just leave it up against the door and go hide. It was like pulling the world's worst knock and run joke, only instead of dog poo he was leaving a helpful baby accessory. 

The door flew open before he could run away, with or without the baby carrier in tow. "Louis!" said Liam, sounding a bit out of breath. Probably he had been doing press ups or jumping jacks or some other extremely healthy exercise that explained why he filled out a t-shirt like he did, although he must have been very quiet about it. 

Louis's brain treacherously wondered if he was quiet during all physical activity, a thought he ruthlessly shoved to the side for later contemplation when he heard Mabel's babbling from inside the flat. He held up the baby carrier. "I, uh, I said I'd bring this by for you." 

Liam reached out for it, his eyes wide. "You didn't have to do that." 

Louis shrugged, feeling even more awkward. "I wanted to. And my mum doesn't need it anymore, so." Louis hadn't been prepared for that conversation with his mum at all. He'd managed to mostly deflect her questions about this new friend who Louis was giving family cast-offs to, but his mum hadn't looked fooled. Sometimes Louis thought it might be nice to not be completely transparent to his mum. But then she'd sent him home with a hug and a fond pat on the cheek, saying, "Take a picture of Liam in his new baby bjorn and email it to me," and he wouldn't trade his relationship with her for anything. 

Liam was turning it this way and that. "How does it work?"

That Louis could handle. "The straps are a bit complicated, but you'll get the hang of it. I can show you how to put it on, if you want," Louis offered.

"Please," Liam said, stepping back so that Louis could come in. He spotted Mabel in her highchair and waved at her, smiling when she slammed her hands down happily on the tray. Louis swung his bag down to the floor and gestured for Liam to come near. 

"So, you just strap this part around," Louis said, hooking it around his waist. Liam's shoulders were right in front of him, and Louis took a deep breath and somehow managed not to grope him too much while he got the bjorn on his shoulders. He cleared his throat and circled round Liam, staring at Liam's chest and arms as he opened the front panel. "Mabel fits in here, and then you buckle her in and that's it," he said, his voice cracking a bit. 

Liam stared at him in wonder. "How did you do that?"

Louis shrugged, feeling flushed and pleased. "It's second nature, really—been wearing one for years when I'd visit my mum and give her a break with the babies. I've got five younger sisters and one brother, so."

"Sounds nice," Liam said a little wistfully. Louis thought about asking about his family growing up, but after Liam's response to him asking about Mabel's mum, he decided against it.

"Well, let's get Miss Mabel up in there," Louis said, picking her up and crossing his eyes at her until she clapped and smiled. "Her foot just goes in there, and then this part attaches up here, and there you go. No hands!" He stood to Liam's side and waved his hands at Mabel, who stared at him for a moment and then waved back. "Oh, very polite."

"Amazing," Liam said softly, leaning forward and kissing the top of Mabel's head. 

Louis's nerves reasserted themselves in his stomach. He reached for his bag. "I also brought that monitor I told you about, if you want me to set it up?"

"You really didn't have to do that," Liam said. 

"I know," Louis said quickly. "I wanted to."

Liam looked like he was having an internal argument with himself. "Okay," he said finally. "That would be great. Thanks, Louis." 

"It's no problem," Louis said, running away from that look on Liam's face. 

Zayn would laugh if he could see Louis now. Liam was bloody gorgeous and a great dad and he seemed to think that everything Louis did was a miracle or something, and instead of basking in the attention, he fled from it. 

He was just being helpful, Louis told himself, and then nearly jumped out of his skin when Liam followed him into the nursery. "I thought you were still out there!"

"I need to know how it works," Liam said, reasonably enough. 

"It's a bit more fiddly than a kettle," Louis said, relieved when Liam laughed. 

"That's why I've got you to show me." Liam smiled at him, each hand holding one of Mabel's feet and kicking them back and forth. 

"Yeah," Louis said weakly, and focused on getting the monitor set up. 

It really wasn't that fiddly, truth be told—just a matter of getting the camera attached to the crib and the screen working, and they were in business. Louis waved his hand in front of the camera once it was switched on. "See? It's just a direct feed or whatever. And you can take it anywhere in the flat." He handed the screen to Liam. 

"Just in time for her to go to bed," Liam said, fingers drumming over her back. "Thanks again, Louis."

He didn't know how to accept more gratitude, so he decided to keep bossing Liam around. "Give her here, and I'll put her down for the night. Give you a bit of a break." 

Liam frowned a bit. "Are you sure? I can manage."

Louis held his hands out demandingly. "I've been a bedtime master for ages, you go sit."

Still looking a little overwhelmed, Liam carefully unbuckled Mabel and lifted her out for Louis. "Well, I do have loads of washing up to do that will be easier without watching her at the same time."

Louis snorted. "You're worse than my mum. I told you to go sit and that's what you should do." He took a big sniff and staggered dramatically. "Well, Miss Mabel, you are pretty ripe. Time for a nappy change before bed, yes?" He pushed Liam out of the room with his free hand. "Now go."

Once Liam was out of the way, he changed her nappy and got her into clean sleep clothes before holding her tight and singing to her. He cycled through song after song, watching her eyes slip closed and then fly back open in a last desperate bid to stay awake while he sang Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Itsy-Bitsy Spider. He kept humming gently after her eyes finally stayed closed, rocking smoothly from foot to foot.

Managing the transfer of a sleeping baby from arms to crib was always a bit tricky, but he managed to lay her down and sneak his arms out from under her without waking her fully. She flailed for a moment, flinging one arm up near her head, but settled again a moment later. 

"Good night, little one," Louis said softly, resting his hand gently over her belly, feeling her breathe. He turned toward the door and nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw Liam stood in the doorway. "Jesus, you scared me," he whispered. 

"You're so good with her," Liam said.

Louis put his finger to his mouth to shush Liam before nudging him out of the nursery and mostly closing the door. "Don't wake her," he said. 

Liam shook his head. "She's down for the count now. She's a good little sleeper."

"Still," Louis said, not quite sure why he was still arguing, except that Liam was looking at him like he was the best person in the whole world.

"You know just what to do with her," Liam continued. 

Louis shrugged. "I told you, I've got loads of experience," he said, feeling bashful. It was a new sensation, that. 

Liam hesitated a moment before saying, "You don't help everyone who has a baby in your building, do you?"

"What?" 

Liam took a step closer. "I've been trying to figure it out, and either you're the most pushy provider of childcare advice I've ever met, or you're coming round for us specially. And I'm sure there are loads of reasons you'd do that, and not just what I'm thinking about, but I've never been good at this stuff, even before Mabel came." He stopped finally, giving Louis's heart a bit of a break from attempting to pound out of his chest. "I mean. Am I reading this wrong, Louis? Because if I am, you have to tell me, please."

"You're not reading it wrong," Louis said, unable to look away from Liam and squirming at the attention.

The relief broke over Liam's face. "Oh, good," he said, and kissed Louis. 

Louis fell into the kiss, getting his hands up on Liam's biceps and then shoulders before pressing even closer to him. So much of the last week hadn't quite made sense, but this he understood. This felt like the easiest thing in the world, teasing Liam with his mouth, biting down on his lower lip like he'd wanted to from the moment he saw him on the stair. He heard Liam's little gasp of breath in response. It was Louis's only warning before Liam pushed him up against the wall with a thump, the monitor falling out of Liam's hand with a loud clatter. 

They both froze for a moment, waiting and listening to see if Mabel had woken up. A moment passed, and then another, until finally Louis leaned in and kissed Liam again, before pinching his side. 

"So loud," Louis murmured in his ear. 

"I didn't mean to," Liam whispered back. He pulled away, looking worried. "I don't know if we should while she's sleeping."

Louis picked up the monitor. "That's why we've got this," he said, shaking it, "and why she's in the nursery."

"She might hear us!" Liam protested, not very convincingly.

Louis leaned back in. "Can you be very quiet?" he asked, feeling Liam still at the words. "I think you can."

"I can try," Liam said after a moment, and Louis had to kiss him for that, deep and a little dirty until Liam moaned. 

"Quiet," Louis said. "Now where's your bedroom?"

Liam swallowed and pulled him down the hall and past the bathroom. Louis didn't have a chance to do more than toss the monitor on top of the bureau before Liam tugged him onto the bed. His hands were everywhere, running up and down Louis's back and then drifting to Louis's arse, squeezing. Louis couldn't stop kissing him, all hesitation lost now that they was finally here. He wanted so much, but for now he would settle for getting his mouth on Liam.

He pushed at Liam until he rolled over, moving willingly until Louis was straddling him. His hands were still tight on Louis's hips, and Louis ground down against him. 

"Fuck," Liam gasped, barely more than a whisper, and Louis bent over to kiss him. 

"Let's see how quiet you can be," Louis said against him mouth, giving him one more slow kiss before moving down Liam's body. He pushed up Liam's t-shirt and kissed over his chest, biting his nipple tentatively while he worked Liam's jeans open. He bit down again when Liam let out a choked-off moan, getting his hand on Liam's dick and feeling it jump every time he sucked a little harder. 

"Get your jeans off," he said quietly, replacing his mouth with his hand on Liam's nipple, his right hand stroking Liam's dick. 

It was leaking and slick already, Louis's hand moving smoothly with the foreskin. Liam thrust up with every stroke, his arms shaking as he attempted to get his jeans and pants all the way off. He collapsed back against the bed once he was naked from the waist down, stomach heaving as Louis gave him a harder stroke. "Please, Louis, I need—"

Louis pinched his nipple hard and Louis gasped loudly. "Remember to be quiet," he said, and bent over to take Liam into his mouth. 

"Oh god," Liam whispered, softly enough that Louis decided not to pull off to chastise him. He focused instead on the head of Liam's cock, swirling his tongue around before sinking down lower until his lips reached his fist. He moved his mouth and hand together, pinching Liam's nipple hard when he took him as far as he could into his mouth, Liam shuddering silently. His fingers drifted down to Liam's balls when he pulled off a bit and took a moment to breathe, sucking gently. Then he sank all the way down, relaxing his throat as he took Liam in and swallowed. 

Liam's hand ran up the back of his neck and into his hair and pulled, his body tense and shaking under Louis. He was whispering, "Oh god, oh god, oh _god,_ " as his hand tightened in Louis's hair. Louis gave his nipple one last sharp tug before pulling off just until he could breathe again, and Liam came in his mouth, hips thrusting erratically.

He was panting hard, stomach rising and falling beneath Louis’s head, and Louis considered scolding him for not being quiet enough. It was a bit alarming how fast Louis had got invested in making Liam pout and protest whenever Louis teased him, but he could hold off for a moment.

Louis ran a hand up Liam’s softening cock, grinning when Liam jumped at the touch. His mouth felt stretched and a bit raw and swollen, like he’d had an entire bag of dry-roasted peanuts in one go. He licked over his lips, feeling smugly satisfied, and reached down to give his hard dick a quick rub.

He was thinking he might just have a nice wank all over Liam's belly when Liam suddenly tugged him over onto his back, getting a leg against Louis’s dick and kissing him hard. Both of Liam’s hands were holding Louis’s face steady as he kissed him, tongue slipping past Louis’s lips, the kiss heady and wet and completely consuming. Louis moaned into his mouth as he rocked his hips up against Liam’s leg, the solid weight and strength of Liam above him absurdly arousing. He tried to regain a bit of control, grabbing Liam’s arse and attempting to set the pace, but Liam pulled away.

“My turn,” Liam said with a little grin, and he had Louis’s jeans and pants off and his mouth on Louis’s cock in quick order.

“Oh, fucking hell,” Louis gasped, gripping the sheets with both hands and trying desperately not to come within fifteen seconds. He let out a loud cry when Liam sank down further, his tongue teasing the underside of Louis's dick. “What, no,” he said weakly when Liam pulled off and moved up to kiss him again and then bit at his jaw and ear.

"Be quiet, Louis," Liam whispered before heading back down, and Louis closed his eyes and dug his teeth into his lip and tried to ride it out. He hadn’t really expected this level of skill from Liam, but that was his own fault. Louis's dick wasn't like a lift or a kettle or a baby monitor, so of course Liam knew exactly what to do. He knew how deep to take Louis in to make him whine, how hard to suck to force a little gasp of air from his mouth, exactly how much Louis could take before he eased off again, teasing him until Louis started to whimper no matter how hard he tried not to.

He was so good at reading Louis that it was only another minute or two before Louis came for what seemed like ages, Liam’s hands pinning his hips to the mattress while his entire body shook and spasmed. Louis felt wrung out and deeply satisfied and like he never wanted to leave the bed, even if he was sweaty and sticking to the sheets a bit. He patted Liam’s head in an attempt to tell him just that.

Liam shuffled up the mattress until his head was on the other pillow and he was looking at Louis, one hand gently brushing over Louis’s stomach. He looked happy and a bit dazed, and Louis had to smile back at him. “You look about two seconds from falling asleep.”

“I know it’s still early,” Liam said, leaning in for a kiss.

Louis kissed him back, letting his eyes slip shut for a moment. “Not for a dad, it’s not. I could drop off myself,” he added, not bothering for subtlety.

He was rewarded when Liam beamed. “I’m just going to check on Mabel, and I’ll be right back.”

“Kay,” Louis said, closing his eyes and feeling Liam’s kiss on his forehead. He vaguely noticed when Liam came back, but he was asleep as soon as Liam got back under the covers.

*

When Louis woke up, it was pitch black and Liam was gone and Mabel was wailing like the world was ending.

“Liam?” he called out, climbing out of bed and pulling his pants on. “Everything okay?” That was when he heard other voices.

He was running to the bedroom door when it burst open, Liam backlit by the hall light. Liam was holding a still-sobbing Mabel with one arm and what looked like a battered piece of wood in his other hand. “Take her!”

Louis obeyed automatically. “Liam, what’s—“

“Get behind the bed with her now!” Liam pushed them behind him and then turned back to the open doorway, holding the stick out confidently. “You’ve made a big mistake coming here,” he said, his voice sounding like iron.

Louis held Mabel tightly to his chest, shushing her as she continued to cry against him. He could just see above the bed, but he ducked down in an instant when a jet of bright blue light shot across the room. _What the fuck._

Liam laughed harshly. “Is that the best you’ve got?”

The smell of something burning filled the room, and what sounded like at least three or four people crying out in pain. Liam was shouting almost continuously, but Louis couldn't understand any of the individual words. Louis stared up from behind the bed as more streams of red and yellow and green crossed above them. The shouting and noise drowned out Mabel's crying, but he felt the sobs shaking her body as he held her close. 

His brain distantly understood that they were under attack, and that he would protect Mabel with everything he had, but he was quite certain that without Liam there, it wouldn’t do any good.

He heard another new voice with a strong Irish accent, and it took a moment before he could actually understand what he was saying. “We’ve got them all, Liam. Six are down.”

“You’re sure?” Liam asked urgently. Slowly, Louis became aware that Mabel was crying again, and realised he could only hear her now because the rest of the flat was suddenly silent.

“Shhhh, Miss Mabel,” he soothed her, his entire body beginning to shake. Probably adrenaline, he noted absently.

A third person spoke. “We’re sure. We tailed them all here after watching them the whole week, and it was always just these six.”

Liam came round to where Louis and Mabel were still huddled behind the side of the bed, along with another man, this one also holding a stick and wearing what looked like graduation robes. “Oh, she’s so upset,” Liam said unhappily. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. Are you alright, Louis?” 

“You’re bleeding,” Louis said, staring at the blood staining the sleeve of Liam’s t-shirt.

“Nothing too serious, I just didn't duck quick enough,” Liam said. 

Louis was about to start fussing over Liam's not-too-serious bleeding flesh wound when the other man nodded at Louis.

"Who's this, then?" he asked Liam. It was the Irish one who had spoken before.

"I'm Louis? From downstairs," Louis said, fairly certain that was the wrong answer to give.

Sure enough, the man in the robe turned and glared at Liam. "What did you get a Muggle involved for, Liam?"

"A what?" Louis asked with a frown.

"Mabel loves him, Niall!" Liam said defensively.

"She certainly seems to," said the third man who came up behind Liam and Niall. He was also holding a stick and wearing long robes. Louis was beginning to feel distinctly underdressed in just his pants and t-shirt, though Liam wasn't wearing anything more than that, either. "Can I hold her?" he asked Louis.

Louis looked at Liam. "Can he?"

"Heyyyy." The third man looked extremely put out.

"Well, to be fair, Harry, he doesn't know you, and we were just attacked," Liam said. Louis resisted the urge to say _yeah_ and stick out his tongue. "But yeah, of course Harry can hold her."

Louis tried to catch Mabel's eye, which was hard given that she was rubbing them like the very tired baby she was. "Okay if Harry holds you, Miss Mabel?" Harry crouched down to pick her up, leaving Louis sat on the floor, and she settled into his arms with a sigh.

"Let's see if I can't put you back to sleep, darling," Harry said, bouncing gently and walking her to the nursery.

"I need to deal with those six idiots and the surrounding area," Niall said, jerking a thumb back over his shoulder towards the living room. "I'll leave you to deal with this."

Louis could only assume that meant him. He attempted to stand up, but sat down hard on the bed when his legs went all wobbly.

"You okay?" Liam asked, coming over and sitting next to him.

Louis decided to start with the easiest question. "What just happened?"

Liam looked startled, and then a bit guilty. "Oh. Well. We were just attacked by a splinter group of dark wizards, who were after Mabel."

"Mabel?" Louis repeated, suddenly anxious that she wasn't where he could keep an eye on her. 

Liam put a hand on his knee. "I promise that she's safe with Harry. Promise," he said, eyes serious.

Louis finally nodded. "What did they want with a baby?"

"We don't know," Liam said. "She was abandoned on the doorstep of a wizard family about three weeks ago, and then these idiots attacked. We were able to rescue her, and she's been in hiding with me ever since. Hopefully once we have them in custody we'll learn more about what they were doing."

"Are you like the wizard police? Or MI6?" Louis asked. He had a terrible thought. "Please don't tell me you're a different splinter group of dark wizards."

Liam laughed a little. "No, I'm an Auror, which is sort of like your police, I think." He peered at Louis, and then tentatively took Louis's hand. He seemed to gain confidence when Louis didn't pull away. "You're taking this awfully well."

"I'll probably have a breakdown about it in a day or two," Louis said brightly. It was almost certainly true. Wizards were real. He should probably call in sick to work in advance. He grinned suddenly. "At least it explains why you can't figure out a kettle."

"Electricity is tricky!" Liam said. 

Louis gave in and kissed his shoulder, staying close. "But the important thing is that you're a good guy, and you just fought bad guys, which is fairly simple to understand. You just used that, instead of a gun or something." He pointed at Liam's stick. 

"A wand carries with it great responsibility," Liam said, his mouth twitching. 

Louis stared at him. "Have you read our comics, then?"

"Might have sneaked into a showing or two of Spiderman," Liam said, looking quite pleased with himself. 

"You're the real superhero," Louis said, squeezing his hand. 

Liam shook his head. "I'm not, really. I'm selfish. I mean, you were only here because of me."

Louis waved a hand at him. "Never mind that. I would have been cross if I'd missed it. I'm always up for this sort of adventure."

He wasn't, actually; he was fairly certain that had he realised just how much danger he was in, he would have fainted or done something else terribly embarrassing. But that was what he had Liam for, wasn't it? To protect him, and then Liam would clearly need Louis to look after him once he was done being ridiculously brave.

Which reminded him. "You're still bleeding. I'm going to get you a wet flannel and clean up that cut. What happened, anyway?"

"A hex just grazed my arm," Liam said. 

"Oh, of course," Louis said, standing up to go to the bathroom. 

"Wait, Louis, I don't actually need that," Liam said. He ripped the sleeve of his t-shirt until the wound was visible, and then pointed his wand at his shoulder and murmured something under his breath. A second later Louis could see the flesh of his arm knit itself back together. 

"Wish I could do that," Louis said, feeling both impressed and a bit sick to his stomach.

"Yeah, it's like a bunch of baby pieces of skin growing together," Liam said, twisting his arm around to see it better.

Louis wasn't entirely sure about that explanation, but Liam might have a better grasp on magic than he did on kettles or baby monitors. That reminded him of something else he'd meant to ask, though. "What's going to happen to Mabel now? Have you found her parents?"

Liam shook his head. "They haven't had any leads. Nobody knows where she came from. Normally she'd be placed for adoption now, but—"

"We're not giving her back," Louis said immediately.

Liam shook his head. "Of course we're not, there's no one to give her back _to._ " He stopped and stared at Louis. "Wait, what do you mean _we're_ not?"

Oh god, what had he been thinking, saying that about a baby who had already been kidnapped and attacked twice before the age of one. Louis opened and closed his mouth and then tried again. "I'm not a dark wizard," Louis finally said.

"What?" Liam looked confused, rather than frightfully dangerous and competent at attacking people. But his wand was still in his hand, and Louis had no illusions about how badly Louis would lose in any fight between them.

"I'm not a dark wizard, or whatever they're called," he repeated, his voice cracking a bit with desperation. "I don't—I'm not trying to steal her or anything." He braced himself for Liam's reaction.

Liam bursting into laughter only felt marginally better than Louis imagined one of those spells would have. "Oh Louis, I know you've got no magic," Liam gasped out finally, wiping tears from his eyes.

"I might have," Louis said grumpily.

Liam shook his head. "Not a drop of it. You're a Muggle through and through, I'm afraid. A non-magic human," he clarified when Louis made a questioning noise. "We scanned the whole building for magical signatures before I moved in, and there were none. Only a very powerful wizard could have concealed their magic from me, and if you were, you'd have clocked me as an Auror the first time we met."

That all seemed very logical and irritating and Louis wasn't remotely disappointed. "Fine, then."

"There's nothing wrong with being a Muggle," Liam said earnestly, appearing to realise Louis was a touch upset. "I like Muggles very much, even though I haven't met very many," he added softly.

It was Louis's turn to stare. "Is that why you slept with me?" he demanded. "Do you have some sort of Muggle fetish?"

"A what?" Liam's brow furrowed. 

Louis held up his hands. "I'm not saying it's a deal-breaker. But you are a kinky bastard, aren't you," he teased. 

Liam's entire face flooded with colour. "I'm not—what's a fetish?"

Without stopping to think, Louis reached over and plucked Liam's wand out of his hand. "Oh come on, you all have these wooden dicks you wave around, you can't tell me you don't know what a fetish is." Liam blushed harder and looked down at the ground. Louis couldn't believe it. "A fetish is when you fancy something just a bit more than most people would. So I think you quite like the idea of being with a Muggle. Very exotic, like."

Liam shrugged, still looking down. "Never really thought one way or another about being with a Muggle before you." Louis was still trying to deal with that when Liam finally looked at him again. "Can someone have a fetish about just one person?"

"For fuck's sake," Louis said, dropping the wand and pulling Liam into a kiss. Liam kissed him back immediately, wrapping his arms around Louis's waist and holding him tight. Some of the adrenaline must still have been coursing through Louis's system, because he started shaking again and couldn't control it, just wanting to get closer to Liam. 

He finally made himself pull away. "Sorry for stealing your wand," he said. 

"It's okay," Liam said, leaning in for another kiss and then leaning his forehead against Louis's.

"Guess you knew I couldn't use it anyway," Louis said ruefully. 

"Yes, but I also trust you," Liam said.

Louis had no idea what to say to that, so he settled for kissing him again. 

"And Mabel's mine," Liam went on. "She hasn't got anyone else, and I'm not letting her be left again. I couldn't bear to let her go now, anyway." He looked devastated at just the thought of losing her, and Louis pulled him in close for a hug. Liam held him back so tightly, and Louis rubbed over his back until he felt Liam relax against him. 

When Louis finally figured out what he needed to say, he tucked his face against Liam's neck, because while he might be brave enough to say this, he didn't know if he could look at Liam while he did. "I said 'we're' because I want to be a part of it. Raising her, I mean."

"Oh," Liam said softly. 

Louis kept his face hidden. "I know it's too fast, especially with everything she's been through, but you asked what I meant by it, and well. That's what I meant." 

"Oh, Louis," Liam said, shifting them until he was kissing Louis again, holding him so close that Louis felt like he couldn't breathe. Louis still felt ridiculous, but also like maybe they could be ridiculous together. A small flower of hope began to bloom in his chest. 

It was damaged a bit when Liam pulled back slightly, a worried sort of frown on his face. "What is it?" Louis asked, already preparing himself for the blow. 

"I'm meant to Obliviate you now," Liam said.

"See, I knew you were kinky," Louis joked weakly. 

Liam only frowned harder. "It will make you forget everything."

The bottom of Louis's stomach dropped out. "Forget the magic?" Louis asked, hoping against hope. 

Liam shook his head. "Everything. That's what Niall's doing now, to everyone who might have seen the fight. It's standard procedure after something like this, and it keeps everyone safer. They'll forget the magic and Mabel and me. They won't remember we ever existed."

Louis swallowed hard against the tears that were threatening to come. "Why are you telling me this, then? Why not just kiss me and do it, if I have to forget everything? I wish I didn't know I would lose all this."

"Because I'm not going to do it." Liam hesitated, and then looked Louis in the eye. "You'll have to let me cast another spell on you, something more complicated. You won't be able to tell anyone about what you saw here, or what the dark wizards wanted, or talk to anyone who isn't a wizard about magic."

"Will it make me forget you?" Louis asked.

Liam shook his head. "Never."

"Then do whatever you want," Louis said.

"It's not easy, you know," Liam said, holding him tight. "Dating a wizard if you're a Muggle, I mean. And I'm an Auror on top of that, and while it's not always dangerous, sometimes it is, and Mabel is a handful already and is just going to get more demanding, and well," he petered off. "I just think you should consider all that."

"Are you quite finished?" Louis asked. Liam nodded, looking hopeful. "Well, good, because you're not getting rid of me that easily," Louis said, and kissed him again.

**Author's Note:**

> You're a wizard, Liam (and Harry and Niall) - it's a Harry Potter crossover :D


End file.
